Machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock



C. A. RICH Jan. 8, 1935.

MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Filed June 6. 1933 6 Sheets-Sheet l gal/4 A M Jan. 8, 1935.

C. A. RICH MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Filed June 6, 1933 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 8, 1935. c. A. RICH 1,986,355

MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Filed June 6, 1933 e Sheets-Sheet 3 W165 m i Jan. 8, 1935. Y c. AfRlcH 1,986,855

MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Filed June 6, 1933 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 & 156

Wflirwss mnbr Jan. 8,1935. c. A. RICH 1,986,855

MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROI BAR STOCK Filed June 6, 1935' 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 C. A. RICH Jan. 8, 1935.

MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Filed June 6, 1933 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 ill Patented Jan. 8, 1935 UNITED STATES MACHINE FOR FASHIONING ARTICLES SUCCESSIVELY FROM BAR STOCK Charles A. Rich, Providence, R. L, assignor to Brown and Sharpe Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Rhode Island Application June s, 1933, Serial No. 674,546 23 Claims. (oi. 29-62 The present invention relates to improvements in screw and similar machines for fashioning articles successively from metal bar stock, and more.

particularly to an improved mechanism for feeding a new bar of stock into position in the machine upon the exhaustion of an old bar.

The construction herein disclosed as embodying in a preferred form the several features of the present invention, is an improvement on and is intended primarily for use with a machine of the general description set forth in the inventors prior Patent No. 1,877,693, dated September 13, 1932. It will, however, be understood that'the present invention in its broader aspects is not to be limited in its application to the particular machine referred to, but may be equally applied to other types of automatic screw and similar machines.

An automatic screw machine of the general description set forth in the patent referred to, is provided with a rotary spindle comprising a feed tube for feeding successive portions of the bar to the tools, and a rotating chuck for gripping and rotating the bar during successive turning operations, a stock stop for positioning the leading end of the bar at the end of each feeding movement, and a number of work engaging tools, together with mechanism for automatically controlling the operation of the tools. There is also provided in the machine referred. to, mechanism which acts automatically upon the exhaustion of the bar being. operated upon by the tools, to stop the machine, select and place a new bar in operating position, and then to put the machine again in operation. This mechanism includes a magazine for storing additional stock, means for selecting from the magazine and placing in the machine a new bar of stock, and a timing mechanism controlled from the old bar which acts upon the completion of the last article formed from the old bar, to set the several mechanisms described in operation.

It is-a principal object of the present invention to provide an automatic mechanism of the general type above described for placing a new bar of stock in-the machine which is constructed and arranged to substantially reduce the amount of time required to place a new bar in the machine, and consequently eifect a substantial increase in the efiiciency of'operation of the entire machine.

With this and other objectsin view, as may hereinafter appear, one feature of the invention is embodied in a construction comprising means for feeding a new bar into operating position in combination with a timing mechanism which is arranged to set the means for feeding a new bar in operation to feed the leading end of the new bar into the feed tube in close proximity to the old bar during the continued operation on the old bar, so that when the machine is stopped at the end of the last operation on the old bar, a relatively small amount of time is required to complete the advancing movement of the new bar to engage with and eject the waste end of the old bar and to place the leading end of the new bar in operating position in the machine.

The several features of the present invention consist in the devices, combinations and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed, which together with the advantages obtained thereby will be readily understood by one skilled in the art from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings,- in which Fig. l is a view in front elevation of an automatic screw machine embodying in a preferred form the several features of the invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of the machineas shown in Fig. 1, showing a setting of the control mechanism to correspond to a condition in which the time required to advance a new bar of stock into operating position is less than that required for the forming of a single article by the operating tools; Fig. 3 is afisectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a plan view of some of the parts shown in Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a detail view of a portion of the mechanism shown in Fig. 2, to illustrate a setting of the controls to correspond to a condition in which the time required for the advancing of a new bar of stock into operating position is greater than that required for the formation of one. or more articles by the operating tools; Fig. 6 is a rear elevation of substantially the parts shown in Fig. 2, but with the parts in the positions taken at substantially the end of the feeding operation; and Figs. 7 to inclusive are a series of views showing the successive steps in the operation of the cam memher for starting the magazine feed in operation to feed the new bar into close proximity to the old bar, and for thereafter set-ting the magazine feed again in operation to eject the old bar and place the new bar in omrating position for a condition where the time required for the operation of the magazine feed is less than that required for the completing of a single article by the operating tools.

Referring specifically to the drawings, the body of the automatic screw machine disclosed is supported on a base 20, and comprises a feed tube 22 through which the bar of stock is fed, a feed collet 24 formed on the inner end of the feed tube for gripping and advancing the bar of stock, a. chuck 26 which rotates at a relatively high rate of speed and is arranged to grip and hold the stock while being operated upon by the tools, and a swinging stop lever 28 which is mounted on a rock'shaft 30 to swing forward during each feeding operation to position the leading end of the bar accurately for engagement by the tools.

. machine frame and at the other end against one of the yokes 64, tends to rock the shaft 60 to the One or more slides are provided for supporting and moving the tools (not shown) into and out of engagement with the work. A turret tool support 32 is generally indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings pivotally mounted on a turret slide 34. The movements of the several cooperating mechanisms of the machine including that of the tools, the stock stop, and the feeding and gripping movements of the feed collet and chuck are controlled in timed relation through connections which may be of any ordinary description, from a main drive shaft 36 and clutch 38. The connections for moving the stock stop 28 into the path of the bar during each feeding movement comprises a vertically extending link 40 which is provided at its upper end with rack teeth to engage with a corresponding pinion 42 on the rock shaft 30 for the stock stop, and at its lower end is connected to a spring-pressed cam lever 44 which engages with a cam on the drive shaft 36. The chuck 26 is actuated alternately to grip and to permit the feeding of the bar by means of connections which are controlled to act in timed relation to the rotation of the main drive shaft 36 and include principally an oscillating lever 46 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings.

As in the prior Patent No. 1,877,693 of the present applicant above referred to, the present machine is provided with a fully automatic mechanism controlled from the old bar for selecting and placing a new bar of stock in operating position in the machine. This mechanism comprises briefiy a magazine for storing additional stock, means for selecting and inserting a new bar of stock from the magazine into the feed tube, and a timing mechanism for controlling the operation of these mechanisms rendered operative, as the old bar becomes exhausted, to put the machine at work upon a new bar.

In order to permit new bars of stock to be fed automatically into the machine, a guideway comprising a long supporting member 50 having a groove 52 adapted to receive a single piece of stock is provided in alignment with the feed tube of the machine. The magazine is mounted directlyabove the supporting member 50 and comprises a series of narrow frames 54 for supporting the bar stock along its length which are adapted to hold a single series of bars one above the other. This column of reserve bars is supported by a long narrow plate 56 which normally closes the lower end of the magazine. The plate 56 is mounted on a flat bar 5'? which is in turn secured to the corresponding arms 58 of a series of similar yokes 64 rigidly mounted on a rock shaft 60 beneath the supporting member 50, so that by rocking the shaft 60 to the left as viewed in Fig. 3, the plate 56 may be removedjo permit a new bar to drop into the guideway 52. At the same time the flanges 62 formed on the remaining arms of the yokes 64 are inserted between the lowest bar and the remaining bars in the magazine to support the column when the plate 56 is removed to release the bottom bar. A compressionspring 66, supported at one end by the right as illustrated in.Fig. 3 to close the magezine.

The new bar is moved along the guideway 52 into operating position in the spindle by means of a feed plunger 6'! which is rigidly secured to an arm 68 on the feed slide bar 70 and is adapted to engage with the rear end of the new piece of bar stock. An arm '72 provided with a slot to receive the bar is mounted on the feed slide 70 adjacent to the arm 68 to insure that the end of the bar registers with the feed plunger 67.

' The mechanism for rocking the shaft 60 against the pressure of the spring 66 to cause a piece of stock to be selected and dropped into the guideway 52 and for actuating the feed slide 70 to feed the bar into operating position in the machine comprises a spiral feed cam '78 for moving the feed slide 70 and a cam for rocking the shaft which are mounted on a cam shaft 82 in themachine frame. The feed slide '10 is connected to move forward and then back again to starting position during the continued rotation of the shaft 82 by the engagement of a cam follower 83 on a bracket 84 secured to the feed slide '70 with the spiral cam 78.

The rock shaft 60 is actuated from the cam 80 by means of a cam lever 85 which is loosely mounted to rotate on the feed slide bar 70 and carries a cam roll 86 adapted to engage with the cam 80 and a second cam roll 88 to engage with one of the yokes 64. When the cam shaft 82 is rotated the roll 86 immediately rides on a high portion of the cam 80 causing the roll 88 to engage the yoke 64 and rock the shaft 60 to permit a new bar to be dropped into the guideway 52. A dwell is provided in the spiral cam 78 so that the feed slide 70 remains stationary until the new bar has been placed in the guideway, aftenwhich it moves forward to advance the bar into the feed tube 22. The cam rolls on the cam lever 85 which is mounted to move with the feed slide 70 now slide out of engagement with the yoke 64 and the cam 80 allowing the rock shaft 60 and the plate 56 to snap back to closed position under the pressure of the spring 66. The downward movement of the cam lever 85 is limited by the engagement of an abutment 92 on the lever with a stop 94 mounted on the feed slide '70.

The driving connections for rotating the cam shaft 82 to cause a new bar of stock to be selected from the magazine and fed into the machine comprise a sprocket wheel which is mounted on a shaft 102 and meshes with the usual sprocket chain 104 for driving a water pump connected with the machine. The sprocket 100 and shaft 102 are continuously driven from the driving sprocket wheel 108 which is secured to the hub of themain driving pulley 48 of the machine. The shaft 102 is connected through the gears 112 and 114 to a stub shaft 116 which abuts the cam shaft 82 and carries a clutch member 118 which is adapted to engage with a corresponding clutch sleeve 120 keyed to slide on the cam shaft 82. The clutch sleeve 120 is' normally held out of engagement with the member 118 against the pressure of compression springs 122 by the engagement of a latch pin 124 formed on one arm of a latch lever 125 with a cam groove 126 formed in the periphery of the sleeve. The latch lever 125 is pivoted at 127 on the machine frame and is yieldingly forced in a direction to engage the latch pin 124 with the' groove 126 by means of With the present machine there is also provided a timing mechanism for controlling the 21311 153; moveri operation of the magazine feed, and for interrupting the operation of the tools, the stock stop and the chuck, to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar and the insertion of a new bar in the machine, with a subsequent return to normal operation. This timing mechanism, while similar in certain respects to corresponding mechanism set forth in applicant's prior patent referred to, embodies a number of features of invention which operate to reduce greatly the amount of time required for placing a new bar in the machine, and thus to correspondingly increase the efiiciency of the machine.

As in the patent above referred to, the mecha- F nism for placing a new bar of stock in the machine, is controlled by means of a timing mechanism comprising a drop lever 130 which is pivotally mounted at 132 on the machine frame to extend across the bar in the machine at the rear end of the feed tube 22, and in turn supports one end of a lever 134 which extends at right angles to the drop lever 130 and is mounted on a fixed pivot 136. The downward movement of the drop lever 130 and the corresponding movement of the lever 134 about its pivot 136 as the end of the old bar passes from under the drop lever, is arranged to set in motion a timing rack bar 138 which is given a step-bystep advancing movement with the completion of each successive article from the old bar. The rack bar 138 is advanced by means of a pawl 140 which is pivoted to the lower end of a short vertically situated lever 142, connected by means of a link 144 to the chuck lever 46 so that the moremenmiiwcnuekeevemewciampthestock to th pindle and to release itwimeach During 'tliehormal operation of the machine the drop lever 130 and the forward end of the lever 134 are held in raised position, so that the rear end of the lever 134 is held in contact with the tail piece 148 on the reciprocating pawl 140 to hold it out of contact with the rack bar 138. As the clld of the bar being fed into the machine passes from under the drop lever 130, the drop lever 130 and the lever 134 are permitted to fall, thus raising the rear end of the lever 134, so that the pawl 140 is engaged with and imparts a step-by-step movement to the rack bar 138.

The rack bar, as in the prior patent referred to, is arranged to advance to a single limiting position in which dogs mounted on the rack bar will engage with the corresponding lever arms first to hold the swing stop lever 28 out of operation, and then to disengage the machine clutch. The starting position of the rack is adjusted in setting up the machine in accordance with the number of articles which can be made from the old bar after the drop lever 130 falls behind the end of the old bar to set the feed rack in operation, so that the last tooth of the rack bar will be engaged by the pawl 140 simultaneously with the completion of the last article from the old bar. For moving the swing stock stop 28 out of operative position to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, a bracket 150 is secured to the forward end of the rack bar 138, and is provided with an adjustable dog 152 which engages a lever 154 when the pawl 140 has reached the last tooth on the rack bar 138. The lever 154 is secured to one end of a rock shaft 156 which also carries a lever arm 158 connected at its free end to one end Exam? of a thrust bar 160. When the contact point 152 comes in contact with the lever 154 to rock the shaft 156, the thrust bar 160 is moved under the cam lever 44 and holds the swing stop lever 28 in its retracted position.

When the final feeding movement of the rack bar takes place, also an adjustable dog 162 formed on the bracket 150 comes in contact with and throws the stopping and starting lever 164 of the machine to the right, as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2 to throw out the machine clutch 38 to stop the machine.

In accordance with the present invention, the timing mechanism is arranged to set in motion the mechanism for selecting and feeding a new bar into the machine in timed relation to and before the completion of the operation on the old bar, so that the leading end of the new bar will have been fed into the feed tube to within a short distance of the rear end of the old bar by the time the last operation is completed. The machine is now stopped with the operating tools and stock stop in retracted position and with the chuck open, so that the waste end of the old bar may be ejected and the new bar advanced into operating position, the machine being finally returned again to active operation. With this mode of operation of the parts, it has been found that the period of time during which the machine is held inoperative, may be reduced from the ten or twelve seconds required for the operation of the mechanism of the applicants prior patent above referred to, to not more than one or two seconds. The saving in time secured by the construction herein set forth may be traced primarily to the fact that the mechanism for selecting and inserting a new bar into the machine is thrown into operation before the completion of the work on the old bar, so that both bars are being fed through the feed tube at the same time. The timing mechanism is further arranged to avoid engaging the leading end of the new bar with the old bar prior to the completion of the operation thereon, and prior to the stopping of the machine to avoid any, possibility of injury to the parts or the scoring or chipping of the leading end of the new bar by the rapidly rotating waste end of the old bar, with the consequent tendency to clog the machine.

The mechanism for setting in operation the means for selecting and advancing a new bar into the machine, comprises a dog 170 adjustably secured to the rack bar, and provided at its leading end with a cam surface 169 which is arranged to come into contact with a pivoted contact pin 1'71 mounted in one arm of the latch lever 125. The advancing movement of the dog 170 causes the pin 1'71 to be tilted from its normal upright position against the pressure of a spring 172, and thereafter to depress the pin and the latch lever 125 (see Figs. '7 to 10 inclusive) to withdraw the latch pin 124 and permit the clutch 120 to engage with the continuously rotating clutch member 118 to throw the mechanism for selecting and inserting a new piece of stock into operation. In accordance with the present invention, the position of the dog 170 is adjusted to throw into operation the clutch 120 before the rack bar has reached the limiting position above described to stop the machine, so that the operations of selecting and advancing a new bar into the feed tube will take place during the continued operation on the old bar. The rotation of the cam shaft 82 upon closing the clutch 120 causes the cams '78 and 80 to act as above described, first to rock the shaft 60 to select and drop a fresh piece of stock into the guideway, and thereafter to advance the feed slide '70. As the shaft 60 is rocked, a cam surface 173 formed on the bar 57 which as above described is mounted on the yokes 64, engages a pin 174 on a projecting arm of the drop lever 130 to return the drop lever 130 and the lever 134 to their raised positions where they are held by the engagement of a latch support 1'75 with a plate 176 formed on the under side of the drop lever 130. During the subsequent advancing movement of the feed slide '70, the leading end of the new bar will pass under the drop lever 130 into the feed tube.

To provide for the continued active operation of the pawl 140 and the uninterrupted advance of the rack when the drop lever 130 and the control lever 134 are reset as above described, the pivot 136 for the lever 134 is arranged to permit a lateral movement of the lever out of alignment with the tail of the pawl 140. A cam-shaped member 177 formed on the lever 134 is arranged upon the actuation of the drop lever 130 and pawl lever 134 to move into the path of a vertical post 178 on the advancing rack, so that the lever 134 will have been moved laterally out of alignment with the pawl 140 prior to the resetting of the drop lever 130 and lever 134. A tension spring 179 secured at one end to the lever 134 and at its other end to the magazine support, tends to move the lever laterally about its pivot to normal operating position, this movement of the lever, however, being prevented after the drop lever 130 and control lever 134 have been reset by the lateral engagement of the lever with one side of the projecting tail of the pawl 140.

The latch lever 125 and latch pin 124 are maintained out of engagement with the clutch sleeve 120 against the pressure of the spring 128 to permit the continued active operation of the spiral feed cam 78 to advance and retract the feed slide 70 by means of a latch mechanism which comprises a latch 182 pivoted on the fixed bracket 184, and held yieldingly in the path of a latch 186 on the latch lever 125 by a compression spring 188. When the dog 1'70 engages with the pin 171 to depress the latch lever 125 and permit the engagement of the clutch, the subsequent rotation of the clutch member 120 causes a cam surface 189 formed thereon to engage with and further rock the latch lever 125, so that the latch members 182 and 186 are brought into operative engagement to lock the latch lever 125 and the pin 124 in a retracted or inoperative position.

In the rest position of the feed slide 70, the latch 182 is held in retracted position out of the path of the latch 186 by means of a lever arm 190 secured to a rock shaft 192 mounted on the machine frame beneath the feed slide 70 and held in contact with the latch 182 by the engagement of a second lever arm 194 on the rock shaft with a cam-shaped member 196 secured to the bracket 84 on the feed slide '70. The advancing movement of the slide 70 to feed a new bar into the machine causes the cam member 196 to move out of contact with the arm 194 and permits the rock shaft 192 and lever arm 190 to rotate under the influence of a torsion spring 198 illustrated in Fig. 1 in a direction to release the latch 182 and lock the latch lever 125 in retracted position. The movement of the rock shaft 192 is limited by the engagement of an abutment 199 on the shaft with a positive stop 200 on the machine frame. At the end of the feeding and return movement of the feed slide 70 caused by the rotation of the spiral cam '78, the cam member 196 on the bracket 84 again engages the arm 194 to rock the shaft 192 and lever arm 190 into contact with the latch 182, to release the latch lever 125 and latch pin 124 which in turn engages the cam groove 126 in the clutch sleeve 120 to disconnect the cam shaft 82 from its driving mechanism.

In setting up the machine for operation to manufacture a particular article, it will be seen that a careful adjustment of the dog 1'70 is required to insure the completion of the last article to be formed on the old bar and the stopping of the machine before the new bar is brought into engagement with the old bar to eject the waste end and to place the leading end of the new bar in operating position.

With the construction and mode of operation of the machine herein disclosed, the rate of rotation imparted through the clutch members 118,

120 to the feed cam 78 is a constant factor,'

whereas the time required to complete the cycle of operations in the manufacture of each successive article may vary within relatively wide limits. Where the time required for the operation of the magazine feed to select and place a new bar of stock in operating position in the machine is greater than that required to complete one or more successive articles from the old bar, the set up of the machine will be substantially that indicated in Fig. 5, the cam surface 169 of the dog 170 being adjusted to depress the latch lever 125 to throw the magazine feed into operation before the rack has reached the limit of its advancing movement and before the completion of the operation on the old bar, and the lever 204 and pivoted arm 206 hereinafter more fully to be described, being placed in an inoperative position out of the path of the cam 196. The precise adjustment of the dog 170 is determined by a comparison of the times required for the manufacture of each individual article, and for feeding in a new bar to permit the completion of the last article before the advancing end of the new bar comes into contact with the waste end of the old bar.

If however a case be assumed in which the time required for turning out one article is greater than that required to place a new bar in the guideway and to advance it into operating position, it is clear that a different mode of operation must be followed for selecting and feeding a new bar into closev proximity to the rear end of the old bar before the machine is stopped. In accordance with one feature of the present invention, mechanism has been provided which is arranged to cause the magazine feed to operate during the continued operation on the old bar to select and advance a new bar into close proximity to the rear end of the old bar, thereafter to discontinue the feed of the new bar, and finally after the completion of the last operation on the old bar to continue the feed of the new bar to eject the waste end of the old bar and place the leading end of the new bar in operating position as above described.

For arresting the advancing movement of the feed slide 70 when the leading end of the new bar has been brought into close proximity to the old bar in the feed tube, a second lever 204 is mounted on the rock shaft 192, and carries a pivoted arm 206 which is arranged in the path of the cam member 196 above described, and is engaged thereby at a predetermined point in the advancing movement of the feed slide 70 to rock the shaft 192 and disengage the latch 182 from the corresponding latch 186 to permit the return of the latch lever 125 and pin 124 to disengage the clutch members 118 and 120. With this construction and mode of operation of the magazine feed, it will readily be understood that the surface 169 of the dog 170 may be adjusted to set the magazine feed in operation during any one of several cycles of operation preceding the manufacture of .the last article by .the machine. It is then necessary to adjust the position of the lever arm'204 along the rock shaft 192 to insure the arresting of the feeding movement before the leading end of the new bar will have come into contact with the rear end of the old bar in the feed tube.

With this mode of operation above set forth it becomes necessary upon the completion of the last article to complete the feeding movement of the feed slide '70 to eject the waste end of the old bar from the machine, and place the leading end of the new bar in operating position. For this purpose, a second cam surface designated at 208 on the dog 170, is arranged at this time to come into engagement with the tilting contact member 171 on the latch lever 125 tov again withdraw the latch lever and pin 124 to permit the engagement of the clutch member 120.

The operation of the dog 170 to depress the latch lever 125 for setting the magazine feed in operation, and again at the end of the last operation on the old bar to again set the magazine feed in operation, is illustrated by a series of views Figs. '7 to 15 inclusive. As illustrated particularly in Figs. 7, 8 and 9, the step-by-step movement of the dog 170 with the timing rack brings the leading cam surface 169 into engagement with the contact pin 171 first to tip the lever against the pressure of its spring 172 and then to depress the contact pin 1'71 and latch lever 125 to engage the clutch 120, the parts now being in the positions shown in Fig. 9. A further downward movement of the latch lever 125 now takes place under the influence of the cam 189 to permit the latch lever to be locked in its retracted position as above described. This additional movement of the latch lever 125 also serves to disengage the contact pin 1'71 from the cam surface 169, and permits it to return to a vertical position in line with a cut-away portion 210 of the dog 170, so that when the latch lever 125 is subsequently released by the engagement of the cam 196 on the advancing feed slide '70 at a later point in the same cycle of operation of the tools to rock the lever- 204 and release 'the feed rack 138 and dog. 1'70 continue to advance to their limiting position indicated by Fig. 13, the contact pin 171 will have been brought into engagement with the second cam surface 208 on the dog 1'70 to again depress the latch lever 125 to complete the feeding operation as above described.

After the old bar. has been ejected and the new bar has been placed in operating position in the machine, the machine is again put-in operation, and the several cooperating mechanisms are returned to their normal positions through connections which are in many respects similar to those set forth in the applicants prior patent above referred to. These connections may be briefly described as followsz-As the feed slide 70 reaches the limit of its advancing movement to complete the operation of placing the new bar in operating position, an adjustable dog 214 secured to the feed slide-'70 is arranged to engage with and rock a lever 216 to release the stop lever 28 and to re-engage the machine clutch. The lever 216 is pivotally mounted at 218 on the machine frame, and is connected at its free end to the corresponding ends .of two push bars 220 and 222. The movement of the lever 216 acts through the push bar 220 and a lever arm 224 secured to the rock shaft 156 to rock the shaft and cause the thrust bar 160 to be withdrawn from under the cam lever 44 to permit the swing stop lever 28 to be returned to active position. The push bar 222 is connected at its free end to a lever arm 230 on the rock shaft, to which the stopping and starting lever 164 is secured, so that this lever is at the same time rocked to engage the machineclutch. Also, as the feed slide '70 reaches the limit of its advancing movement, a plate 232 supported on the feed slide '70 is arranged to pass under the end of an arm 234 formed integrally with thepawl 140 to rock the pawl out of engagement with the feed rack, at the same time depressing the tail of the pawl so that the control leve'r 134 is permitted to move laterally about its pivot under the pressure of its spring 1'79 to its normal position overlying the pawl, thus locking the pawl in its retracted position.

The rack bar 138 of the timing mechanism is returned to starting position during the return movement of the feed slide '70 by the engagement of a spring plunger 236 seated in an arm of the bracket 84 secured to the slide '70, with a corresponding lug 238 formed on the rack bar 138. The spring plunger 236 is beveled on one side so that during the forward movement of the feed slide '70 the plunger 236 rides yieldingly' over the lug 238, but on the return movement of the slide '70 engages the lug to retract the rack bar 138.

The position to which the rack bar is returned is determined in accordance with the requirements of the work to cause a number of rack teeth to be acted upon by the pawl exactly corresponding to the number of feeding movements neces- 'sary to exhaust the bar after the drop lever 134 is released to throw the pawl 140 of the timing mechanism into operation. For this purpose a button 240 is mounted on the under side of the spring plunger 236 and is adapted to engage a trip plate 242 which is adjustably mounted on the machine frame, and is arranged to cause the plunger 236 to move back out of engagement with the lug 238 to discontinue the retracting move ment of the rack bar.

The hook-shaped lever 228 is secured to the rock shaft 192, and is adapted while the shaft is rocked to the left as viewed in Fig. 3, during the forward and return movement of the feed slide '70 to bear down upon the rear end of the lever 134 to insure the proper positioning of the lever particularly during the return movement of the rack bar 138-to its original starting position i; hold the pawl in inoperative position.

During the retracting movement of the feed slide '70 the cam 196 will engage with and tilt the pivoted contact member 206 on the feed stop lever 204 without moving the lever. As the feed slide is finally returned to its retracted position, the cam 196 engages the lever 194 to rock the shaft 192 to disengage the feed clutch 120, so thatthe machine is again set for normal operation with the parts in the positions generally indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

The nature and scope of the invention having been indicated, and a preferred embodiment thereof having been described, what is claimed 1. A machine for fashioning articles successive-= ly from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism controlled from the old bar arranged to feed a new bar into the machine during the continued operation on the old bar independently of and not of engagement with the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to replace the waste end of the old bar with the leading end of the new bar in operating position only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

2. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, means for feeding a new bar into operating position independently of said feed of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the old bar arranged to set said means for feeding a new bar in operation during the continued operation on the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to complete said feeding movement of the new bar only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

3. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding bar stock to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism controlled from the old bar to advance a new bar independently of and during the continued operation on the old bar,

and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to position said new bar in operative position only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

4. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, a chuck mechanism for imparting a rapid rotary movement to said bar, means for feeding said rotating bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, means for feeding a new bar into operating position independently of said feed of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the old bar effective to set in operation said means for feeding a new bar to advance said new bar during continued operation on the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to bring the leading end of the new bar into engagement with the waste end of the old bar to eject the same only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

5. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, feeding mechanism for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, means for feeding a new bar into operating position, means for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the old bar act- 8 upon completion of the last operation on the old bar to render operative said means for interrupting the operation of the machine, and effective to set in operation said means for feeding a new bar into operative position during the continued operation on the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to bring the leading end of the new bar into engagement with the waste end of the old bar to eject the same only during said interruption.

6. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding bar stock to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism controlled from the old bar effective to interrupt the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar after completion of the last operation thereon and to advance a new bar independently of and during the continued operation on the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to bring the leading end of the new bar into engagement with the waste end of the old bar to eject the same during said interruption.

, l. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding bar stock to present successive portions to the work engaging tools means for feeding a new bar into operating position, means to interrupt the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the was% end of the old bar upon completion of the last operation thereon, mechanism controlled from the old bar to set in motion said means for feeding a new bar into operating position during continued operation on the old bar and upon completion of said last operation to actuate said means for interrupting the normal operation of the machine, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to bring the leading e d of the new bar into engagement with the was 1 end of the old bar to eject the same only after the completion of the last article thereon.

8. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, feeding mechanism for feed-.- ing a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism for rotating the bar while engaged by the tools, means for supporting the rotating bar along its length on the axis of rotation of the bar, mechanism rendered active during the continued operation on the old bar to move a new bar of stock endwise, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to cause the advancing end of the new bar to engage and eject the waste end of the old bar only upon completion of the last operation thereon.

9. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, mechanism for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism for rotating the bar while engaged by the tools, a machine clutch, means for feeding a new bar into operating position, and mechanism arranged to seti'n operation said means for feeding a new bar during continued operation on the old bar, and thereafter upon completion of the last operation on the old 2 bar to disengage the clutch to permit the ejection the machine, and mechanism controlled by the exhaustion of the old bar for setting in operation said mechanism for feeding a new bar into the machine during the continued operation on the old bar, and thereafter upon the completion of the last operation on the old bar to disengage the machine clutch and position said stock stop,

to permit the ejection of the waste end of theold bar byfthe advancing movement of said new bar.

11. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, mechanism for intermittently feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism for rotating the bar while engaged by the tools, means having a predetermined feed rate for advancing a new bar into operating position in the machine, mechanism rendered active during the continued operation on the old bar to set said means for feeding a new bar into operation, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to complete said feeding movement only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

12. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, feeding mechanism for imparting intermittent feeding movements to a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism for rotating the bar while engaged by the tools, means for supporting the rotating bar along its length on the axis of rotation of the bar, mechanism for moving a new bar of stock endwise into position to be engaged by the feeding mechanism, mechanism acting in timed relation to the exhaustion of the old bar to set said mechanism for advancing a new bar in operation during the continued operation on the old bar, and means for controlling the operation of said mechanism to bring the leading end of the new bar into engagement with the waste end of the old bar only after the completion of the last operation on the old bar.

13. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means comprising a feed tube'for feeding a bar to present successive end portions to the work engaging tools, a device for selecting and inserting in the tube a new piece of stock, a device for interrupting the operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, and mechanism controlled from the oldbar for actuating said devices to place a new bar in the machine comprising a drop lever, a timing rack, a pawl continuously reciprocated in timed relation to the feeding of the bar being operated upon, a control lever pivoted for lateral and vertical movements supported by the drop lever and bar being operated upon to maintain the pawl inoperative, means controlled by the advancing movement 'of said rack to render operative said device for interrupting the operation of the machine upon completion of the last article on the old bar, means controlled by the advancing movement of the rack to throw into operation said device for placing a new bar in the machine during the continued operation on the old bar and to reset the drop lever, means con,

,,trolled by the advancing movement of the rack to move said control lever laterally out of vertical alignment with the pawl prior to resetting said drop lever and control lever, and means rendered operative after the completion of the advancing movement of said rack to disengage the pawl and to permit the lateralmovement of the control lever to lock the pawl in inoperative position.

14. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, a feed tube for feeding bar stock to present successive portions to the work engagingtools, a magazine for storing additional stbck, mechanism for selecting from the magazine and inserting in the feed tube a new piece of stock, mechanism including a drop lever supported by the bar being operated upon for setting said mechanism for inserting a new bar in the feed tube in operation during the continued operation on the old bar, means rendered operative by said selecting and inserting mechanism to reset the drop lever, and means controlled by the actuation of said drop lever and rendered operative upon completion of the last operation on the old bar to set the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar from the feed tube by the advancing end of the new bar.

15. A machine for fashioning articlessuccessively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means comprising a feed tube for feeding a bar to present successive end portions to the work engaging tools, a feed tube for feeding bar stock to presentsuccessive portions to the work engaging too1s,'a magazine for storing additional stock, a device for selecting and inserting in the tube a new piece of stock, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, and mechanism controlled from the old bar for actuating said devices to place a new bar in the machine comprising a pawl continuously reciprocated in timed relation to the feeding of the bar being operated upon, a timing rack, -a drop lever supported by the bar being operated upon arranged upon the passing of the end of the old bar to engage the pawl with the rack to set in operation said device for selecting and inserting in the tube a new piece of stock during the continued operation on the old bar, means rendered operative by said selecting and inserting mechanism to reset the drop lever, means controlled by the advancing movement of the rack to set in operation said device for interrupting the operation of the machine upon the completion of the last article upon the old bar, and means controlled by said device for inserting in the feed tube a new piece of stock to disengage the pawl from the rack.

16. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means comprising a feed tube for feeding a bar to present successive end portions to the work engaging tools, a device for selecting and inserting in the tube a newpiece of stock, a device for interrupting the operation of the machine to permit the eject-ion of the waste end of the old bar, and mechanism controlled from the old bar for actuating said devices to place a new bar in the machine comprising a drop lever, a timing rack, a pawl continuously reciprocated in timed relation to the feeding of the bar being operated upon, a control lever supported by the drop lever and bar being operated upon to maintain the pawl inoperative, means controlled by the Li I control lever to permit the continued engagement of the rack by the pawl upon resetting said drop lever.

17. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, mechanism for rotating the bar while engaged by the tools, means for feeding a new bar into operative position in the machine, and mechanism arranged to set in operation said means for feeding a new bar during the continued operation on the old bar arranged to arrest said feeding movement prior to the engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, and thereafter upon completion of the last operation on the old bar to resume said feeding movement to eject the waste end of the old bar and place the leading end of the new bar in operating position.

18. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, areciprocating feed tube through which the bar is fed to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, .means for feeding a new bar into operative position in the feed tube, and mechanism rendered operative prior to the exhaustion of the old bar to feed a new bar into said feed tube, means for arresting said advancing movement prior to engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, and means acting upon completion of the last operation on the old bar to continue said feeding movement to place the new bar in operating position in the feed tube.

19. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, a device for feeding a new bar into operating position, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the bar being operated upon to set in operation said device for feeding a new bar into operative position, means for arresting the operation of said device prior to engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, and means actuated by said mechanism after the completion of the last article from the old bar to render operative said devices to complete said feeding movement of the new bar to eject the old bar and place the new barin operating position during the interruption of the normal operation of the machine.

20. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, a device for feeding a new bar into operating position, arranged to complete said feeding operation within the time required by the machine to form a single article, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the bar being operated upon to set in operation said device for feeding a new bar into operative position, means for arresting the operation of said device prior to engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, and means actuated by said mechanism after the completion of the last article from the old bar to render operative said devices to complete said feeding movement of the new bar to eject the old bar. and place the new bar in operating position during the interruption of the normal operation of the machine.

21. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, a device for feeding a new bar into operating position including a clutch and a feed member driven by the clutch arranged to complete said feeding operation within the time re quired by-the machine to form a single article, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, mechanism controlled from the bar being operated upon to engage said clutch to set in operation said device for feeding a new bar, means actuated by said feed member for disengaging said clutch prior to engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, and means actuated by said mechanism after the completion of the last article from the old bar to render operative said device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine and to re-engage said clutch.

22. A' machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, a device for feeding a new bar into operating position including a clutch, a lever to control the operation of the clutch, a pivoted contact pin on the lever, a feed member driven by the clutch arranged to complete said feeding operation within the time required by the machine to form a single article, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar, and mechanism controlled from the old bar for actuating said devices to place a new bar in the machine comprising a timing rack, a pawl having imparted thereto a single reciprocatory movement for each feeding movement of the old bar. detecting means controlled by the passing of the end of the old bar to engage said pawl with the rack, a cam dog on the rack arranged to engage with and tilt said pivoted contact pin and depress the lever to engage the clutch, means rendered operative upon the engagement of the clutch to further depress and hold said lever to permit the straightening of said pin behind the cam dog, means actuated by said feed member to permit the rise of said lever to disengage the clutch prior to the engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar, means controlled by the continued advance of said rack to put in operation said device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine upon completion of the last article on the old bar, and a second cam dog on said rack arranged, simultaneously with said interruption, to engage with said pivoted contact pin to depress the lever and reengage said feeding clutch.

23. A machine for fashioning articles successively from bar stock having in combination with work engaging tools, means for feeding a bar to present successive portions to the work engaging tools, a device for feeding a new bar into operating position including a feed member arranged when rendered operative to complete its feeding movement within the time required by the machine to form a single article, a control lever. a pivoted contact pin on the lever, a device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine to permit the ejection of the waste end of the old bar,.and mechanism controlledfrom the old bar for actuating said devices to place a new bar in the machine comprising a timing rack, a pawl having imparted thereto a single reciprocatory movement for each feeding movement of the old bar, detecting means controlled by the passing of the end of the old bar to engage said pawl with the rack, a cam dog on the rack arranged to engage with and tilt said pivoted contact pin and depress the lever to render operative said device to feed a new bar into the machine, means controlled by said feeding device to further depress and lock said lever in operative position and to permit the straightening of said pin behind the cam dog, means rendered operative prior to the engagement of the leading end of the new bar with the old bar to release said lever and arrwt the advancing movement of the feed member, means controlled by the continued advance of said rack upon the completion of the last article on the old bar to put in operation said device for interrupting the normal operation of the machine, and a second cam dog on said rack arranged, simultaneously with said interruption to engage with said pivoted contact pin to depress the lever to continue-the advancing movement of said teed member.

CHARLES A. RICH. 

